Starting means for explosive-engines.



N0. 788,595. PATENTED MAY 2, 1905.

H. J. PonLBAK.

STARTING MEANS FOR. EXPLOSIVB ENGINES.

' APPLIOATION FILED JULY 25. 1904.

Nrrn TATES Patented May 2, 1905.

HENRY JOSEPH PODLESJIK, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO INTER- NATIONAL HARVESTER COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPO- RATION OF NEW JERSEY.

STARTING MEANS FOR EXPLOSlVE-ENGINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 788,595, dated May 2, 1905.

Application filed July 25, 1904- Serial No, 217,901.

To all whom it hwy concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY Josnrn Penmasiiu, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and use ful Improvements in Starting Means for Ex.- plosive-Engines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the ac companying drawings, forming a part thereof.

My invention relates to what are called in ternal-combustion engines impelled by explosive vapor or gas ignited in the cylinders thereof by means of electrical apparatus re quiring that the charges be compressed by action of the engine before ignition can take place, consequently requiring some auxiliary means of starting the engines before the regular explosive impelling power can be applied.

The object of my invention is to avoid the necessity and risk of starting such engines by hand, auxiliary power, or supplemental engines, as has hitherto been the custom, also to render such gas or vapor engines more simple. Y

The invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combination of parts, substantially as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

Figure 1 is an end elevation of a gas or vapor engine provided with my improved starting mechanism. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the valve and igniting actuatingcam. Fig. I is a sectional View of Fig. 3 on line A B.

Similar numerals of reference are employed to designate like parts where they appear in different figures.

The engine consists of a cylinder 1, a compression-chamber 2, and a base-frame 3, in which the crank and crankshaft are inclosed. The induction and exhaust valves are of the mushroom type, and the exhaust-valve is operated by means of a rocking arm 4, pivoted on the compression-chamber 2 and operated by means of a connecting-rod 5, pivoted to its outer end, the rod extending downward and having at its lower end a roller 6, that contacts with a cam 7, driven by means of suitable gearing from the crank-shaft. The roller 6 is journaled in an arm 6", pivoted on 5 the base 3 at or near one end and has the rod 5 connected to its opposite end, and a spring 6 in combination with a plunger 6, operates to hold the rod 5 in contact with the cam by pressure against the short arm of the lever 6 The connecting-rod has attached thereto a spring-actuated pawl 8, guided by a flanged roller 9, supported on a short crank-arm l0, adjustably secured to the cylinder 1.

11 is a lever-arm pivoted on the outer end of a shaft carrying upon its inner end the movable electrode of a common form of sparking mechanism and with which the pawl 8 is adapted to contact in a well-known manner.

The foregoing description corresponds to a 6 5 common form of this type of engine and is not claimed as my invention. The cam 7 is operatively connected with a gear 12, that is driven by a pinion 13 on the engine crankshaft, as is common in this class of engines. 7

In the regular operation of the engine the fly-wheel moves in the direction indicated by the arrow, and the gear-wheel 12, carrying the cam 7, moves in an opposite direction. The cam 7 is provided with a portion 7, designed to operate the reciprocating rod 5 in a direction and at the proper time to have the pawl 8 operate the movable electrode to cause a spark to ignite the charge of explosive mixture in the well-known way in the regular 0 8O eration of the engine. Upon that portion of the periphery of the cam 7 approximately opposite to that of 7 is formed the raised portion 7 the function of which will now be described. The portion 7 3 is designed to 5 move the rod 5 to open the exhaust-valve at predetermined intervals during the normal operation ofthe engine.

In starting engines of this type it is customary to turn the fly-wheel in a forward direc- 9 tion to cause a charge of explosive material to be drawn into the cylinder, and a continuous movement of the wheel will cause the piston in its rearward movement to compress the charge, and the igniting mechanism will be operated to explode the charge in a usual way. To fully compress the charge in this l manner is difficult and in some of the larger engines impossible unless means be provided for the escape of a portion of the charge to reduce its volume or other auxiliary starting mechanism. My invention is designed to obviate these difficulties.

To start an engine provided with my improvements, all that is necessary is to turn it in a forward direction sufficient to draw in a charge of the explosive, and then the flywheel is caused to move in a reverse direction to partially compress the charge, and before the compression has become dense enough to resist a light force on the fly-wheel the cam portion 7 of the cam 7 reciprocates the rod and the pawl 8, operating the igniting mechanism, explodes the charge, and the piston and fly-wheel are moved in an opposite direction, and this initial charge operates to start the engine, and its movement is continuous in the usual way.

As shown in Fig. 2, the fly-wheel has been turned rearward to draw in the charge, and the cam portion 7 has operated to reciprocate rod 5, and the spring-pawl 8 has operated to vibrate the movable electrode 'to ignite the charge, and the resulting explosion will cause the fly-wheel to move in a forward direction, and the gear connection with the crank-shaft will turn the cam 7 in the direction indicated by the arrow; but as the downward movement of the piston caused by the explosion will only move the fly-wheel through approximately one-half of a revolution, and consequently the cam '7 through approximately one-quarter of a revolution, owing to the usual two-to-one proportion of the camactuating gearing, it will be seen that the cam 7 will not reach a position to cause the rod 5 to open the exhaust-valve by means of the vibrating lever t before the piston begins its return stroke, and it becomes necessary to provide other means for exhausting the spent gases, which is done by providing a communication between the exhaust-pipe 14 and the lower end of the cylinder 1, as shown in Fig. 2, where 15 represents an exhaust-port communicating with the cylinder at its lower end,

and 16 represents the regular exhaust-chamber, into which the exhaust-valve opens and from which a passage 17 leads downward to the exhaust-pipe 14.

The auxiliary exhaust-port 15 is not required in the regular operation of the engine, as the automatic means for opening the exhaust-valve at the proper time performs its proper function in the succeeding revolutions of the fly-wheel.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a gas-engine, the combination of an igniting mechanism, a reciprocating rod having means for operating the igniting mechanism, a cam deriving motion from a movable part of the engine and adapted to actuate said reciprocating rod to ignite the charge at predetermined intervals during the regular operation of the engine, said cam having a portion adapted to reciprocate said rod during a backward operation of the engine to ignite an initial charge when a desired density of compression of said initial charge is reached.

2. In a gas-engine, the combination of an explosion-chamber having induction and exhaust valves and induction and exhaust ports controlled by said valves, a cylinder having the explosion-chamber at one end and a supplemental exhaust-port near the opposite end, an igniting mechanism communicating with the explosion-chamber, a reciprocating rod having means for operating the igniting mechanism and the exhaust-valve, a cam deriving motion from a movable part of the engine, said cam having the portions 7 and 7 adapted to actuate said reciprocating rod to ignite the charge and open the exhaust-valve at predetermined intervals during the regular operation of the engine, and also the portion 7 approximately opposite the portion 7, adapted to actuate said rod to ignite an initial charge during a backward operation of the engine when said initial charge has been compressed to a required degree of density.

In witness whereof 1 hereto affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY JOSEPH PonLEsAK.

Witnesses:

0. A. HAGADONE, P. GuLBRANsoN. 

